Description
Book SynopsisAlfred Russel Wallace, Henry Walter Bates and Richard Spruce were English naturalists who went to Amazonia 150 years ago. This book combines all three young mens experiences of the Amazon, drawing heavily on their own letters and books.
Trade Review'Hemming’s fascination [with the Amazon] shines out of every page … a compelling story … Hemming tells the story of this extraordinary trio without hype, wisely content to let the facts and their own reflections speak largely for themselves' - Daily Mail
'A splendid, indeed brilliant book … the first comprehensive account of those three historic figures' - Wade Davis, winner of the 2012 Samuel Johnson Prize
'Clear and compelling … Hemming tells a hardly believable story with great clarity and sympathy' - Financial Times
'Hemming turns the technical nightmare of combined biographies into a seamless daydream … his book is itself a little piece of intellectual paradise' - The Oldie
'This beautifully crafted book is not only a pleasure to handle but also a valuable reference work as it is complemented by a substantial bibliography and detailed cross-references' - Archives of Natural History
Table of Contents1: A naturalist’s paradise • 2: Antecedents • 3: Enterprising young men • 4: The mouth of the Amazon • 5: Into Amazonia • 6: Manaus • 7: Wallace on the Rio Negro • 8: Into the unknown • 9: Calamities • 10: Bates on the Amazon • 11: Spruce climbs to the Andes • 12: Later lives: the Amazonian legacy
